Agentless and/or pre-boot support, and field replaceable unit (fru) isolation

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for providing agentless and/or pre-boot technical support, and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) isolation. In some embodiments, an Information Handling System (IHS) includes an embedded controller (EC) distinct from any processor or Basic I/O System (BIOS), the EC having program instructions stored thereon that, upon execution, cause the IHS to: implement a network stack independently of an operational status of the processor or BIOS, perform one or more diagnostic operations upon the IHS, and communicate a result of the one or more diagnostic operations to a remote server using the network stack.

FIELD

This disclosure relates generally to computer systems, and morespecifically, to systems and methods for providing agentless and/orpre-boot technical support and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) isolation.

BACKGROUND

As the value and use of information continues to increase, individualsand businesses seek additional ways to process and store information.One option is an Information Handling System (IHS). An IHS generallyprocesses, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data forbusiness, personal, or other purposes. Because technology andinformation handling needs and requirements may vary between differentapplications, IHSs may also vary regarding what information is handled,how the information is handled, how much information is processed,stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the informationmay be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSs allowfor IHSs to be general or configured for a specific user or specific usesuch as financial transaction processing, airline reservations,enterprise data storage, global communications, etc. In addition, IHSsmay include a variety of hardware and software components that may beconfigured to process, store, and communicate information and mayinclude one or more computer systems, data storage systems, andnetworking systems.

In many situations, an IHS may need to be serviced or supported. Forexample, the IHS may have hardware and/or software that needs to befixed, updated, removed, installed, or replaced from time to time. Toaddress these, and other problems, certain systems and methods describedherein may enable a computer manufacturer or service provider to allowcustomers to have access to automated, simplified support actions oroperations, for example, even when an IHS is not otherwise able to bootto an Operating System (OS) or has other serious hardware or softwarefailures.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of systems and methods for providing agentless and/orpre-boot technical support, and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) isolation,are described herein. In an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment, anInformation Handling System (IHS) may include an embedded controller(EC) distinct from any processor or Basic I/O System (BIOS), the EChaving program instructions stored thereon that, upon execution, causethe IHS to: implement a network stack independently of an operationalstatus of the processor or BIOS, perform one or more diagnosticoperations upon the IHS, and communicate a result of the one or morediagnostic operations to a remote server using the network stack.

In various embodiments, the program instructions may be configured to beexecuted in the absence of any Operating System (OS) environment,graphical interface, or user instruction. The IHS may host a web servicevia the EC using the network stack, and the web service may beconfigured to provide the result of the one or more diagnosticoperations in response to a request. Additionally or alternatively, theIHS may send an alert to a pre-registered Internet Protocol (IP) addressvia the EC using the network stack, and the alert may include anindication of the result of the one or more diagnostic operations.

These diagnostic operations may be configured to identify a processorfailure or a BIOS failure. Additionally or alternatively, diagnosticoperations may be configured to identify a power failure, a clockfailure, or a code fetching failure. Additionally or alternatively,diagnostic operations may be configured to identify a defective FRU in apre-boot environment. For example, diagnostic operations may beconfigured perform the identification of the FRU, at least in part, byinspecting a voltage value for each of a plurality of platform-specificnodes, and comparing a current voltage value with a previous value foreach node.

In another illustrative, non-limiting embodiment, a computer-implementedmethod may include: implementing a network stack by an EC independentlyof an operational status of a processor or BIOS; performing, by the EC,one or more diagnostic operations upon the IHS; and communicating aresult of the one or more diagnostic operations, by the EC, to a remoteserver using the network stack, wherein the one or more diagnosticoperations are configured to identify a defective FRU in a pre-bootenvironment.

In yet another illustrative, non-limiting embodiment, a storage devicemay have program instructions stored thereon that, upon execution by anIHS, cause the IHS to: implement a network stack by an EC independentlyof an operational status of a processor or BIOS; perform, by the EC, oneor more diagnostic operations upon the IHS; and communicate a result ofthe one or more diagnostic operations, by the EC, to a remote serverusing the network stack, wherein the one or more diagnostic operationsare configured to identify a defective FRU in a pre-boot environment.

In some embodiments, one or more of the techniques described herein maybe performed, at least in part, by an IHS operated by a user.Additionally or alternatively, the techniques described herein may beperformed, at least in part, by an embedded controller within an IHS.Additionally or alternatively, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumor memory device may have program instructions stored thereon that, uponexecution, enable an embedded controller to perform one or more of thetechniques described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention(s) is/are illustrated by way of example and is/arenot limited by the accompanying figures, in which like referencesindicate similar elements. Elements in the figures are illustrated forsimplicity and clarity, and have not necessarily been drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an environment wheresystems and methods for providing service and support to computingdevices may be implemented according to some embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of an Information HandlingSystem (IHS) according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example of a firmware controlleraccording to some embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an example of a method for providing agentlessand/or pre-boot technical support, and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU)isolation according to some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To facilitate explanation of the various systems and methods discussedherein, the following description has been split into sections. Itshould be noted, however, that the various sections, headings, andsubheadings used herein are for organizational purposes only, and arenot meant to limit or otherwise modify the scope of the description orthe claims.

A. Overview

The inventors hereof have recognized a need for providing systems andmethods for service and support to computing devices. Existing toolsintended to facilitate service and/or support of a client device orInformation Handling System (IHS) do not adequately address numerousproblems, such as, for example, situations when the IHS fails to boot amain or primary Operating System (OS) for any reason, whether due to ahardware or software problem, such that the IHS is said to be in a“degraded state.” To address these and other concerns, embodimentsdescribed herein provide Embedded Controller (EC), Basic I/O System(BIOS), and/or service OS -level intelligence to enable a client deviceto self-diagnose and to receive automated service and support. Scenarioswhere the IHS fails to boot any OS are also addressed. Additionally oralternatively, in some embodiments, the main or primary OS may bemodified to implement one of more of the foregoing features.

The term “degraded state,” as used herein, refers to the state of an IHSthat is not capable of booting a main or primary OS (e.g., WINDOWS®, MACOS®, LINUX®, etc.), either fully or partially (e.g., in WINDOWS®'s “safemode” or the like). When operating in a degraded state, the IHS maystill be able to execute BIOS instructions and/or a “service OS” (SOS).In more extreme or “catastrophic” situations, the IHS may not be able toboot a service OS and/or to properly execute BIOS instructions (e.g., inthe event of a CPU failure), but yet the IHS' EC may be configured toperform a number or support operations described herein.

The term “BIOS,” as used herein, refers to a type of firmware usedduring an IHS's booting process (e.g., power-on or reset). The BIOSinitializes and tests an IHS' hardware components, and loads a bootloader or an OS from a memory device. The BIOS also provides anabstraction layer for the hardware which enables software executed bythe IHS to interact with certain I/O devices such as keyboards,displays, etc. Incidentally, the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface(UEFI) was designed as a successor to BIOS to address certain technicalissues. As a result, modern IHSs predominantly use UEFI firmware and theterm “BIOS,” as used herein, is intended also encompass UEFI firmwareand future variations thereof.

The term “EC,” as used herein, refers to a firmware controller orchipset (distinct from the BIOS) that has traditionally provided the IHSwith legacy Super I/O functionality plus certain control features,including: a floppy disk controller, game port, infrared port, intrusiondetection, keyboard and mouse interface, parallel port, real-time clock,serial port, temperature sensor and fan speed, and a number ofgeneral-purpose input/output (GPIO) pins. In various embodimentsdescribed herein, an EC may be outfitted with instructions that enableit to perform non-conventional operations such as, for example,implement a network stack and/or identify defective Field ReplaceableUnits (FRUs).

The term “service OS,” as used herein, refers to one or more programinstructions or scripts distinct from an IHS's “main OS” or “primary OS”such that, upon execution by an IHS (e.g., upon failure by the IHS toload the main or primary OS), enable one or more support, diagnostics,or remediation operations to be performed independently of the state ofthe main or primary OS. The service OS may include one or more serviceand support applications, as described in more detail below. In somecases, an SOS may be stored in a recovery partition of a hard drive.Additionally or alternatively, an SOS may be stored in a Non-VolatileMemory (NVM) or flash memory built into the client system. Additionallyor alternatively, the SOS may be stored in a remote location so as toallow an IHS to boot remotely “from the cloud.”

As used herein, the terms “Field Replaceable Unit (FRU)” or “CustomerReplaceable Unit (CRU)” include any IHS component, circuit board, card,part, or assembly that can be quickly and easily removed from the IHSand replaced by the user or customer (typically without much technicalknowledge) without having to send the entire IHS to a repair facility.In some cases, FRUs may also allow a technician lacking in-depth productknowledge to isolate and replace faulty components. Examples ofidentifiable FRUs include, but are not limited to, CPU(s), BIOS, memorymodule(s), hard drive(s), video cards, the motherboard itself, etc.

In some embodiments, service capabilities may be invoked either“pre-boot” or “pre-OS.” Pre-boot capabilities may be built into the ECand/or BIOS/UEFI, and pre-OS capabilities may be provided by a serviceOS. For example, pre-boot services may include enhanced EC routinesconfigured diagnose certain IHS problems and to support a minimum degreeof network communications. Additionally or alternatively, enhanced BIOSdiagnostics tools may be also used to detect hardware failure, providecertain support services, etc. Conversely, pre-OS services may includeenabling a service OS to provide customer automated assistance, usingbuilt-in remediation scripts to help diagnose and remediate the device,improve support efficiency using live chat, remote control support, etc.

In some implementations, pre-boot services may be focused on “no-boot”scenarios, whereas pre-OS services may be focused on operations such asremediation, boot from web, re-imaging from web, etc.

As will be understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art in lightof this disclosure, virtually any IHS environment that requires serviceor support may implement one or more aspects of the systems and methodsdescribed herein. Furthermore, certain aspects of the connected systemsdescribed herein may be implemented by computer manufacturers, softwareproviders, and/or service or support companies.

B. Service and Support Architecture

Turning now to FIG. 1, a diagram illustrating an example of anenvironment where systems and methods for providing service and supportto computing devices may be implemented is depicted according to someembodiments. As shown, each of any number of client devices 102A-N maybe an IHS or other computing device (generically referred to as “IHS102,” “client 102,” “client device 102,” or “device 102”) including, forexample, desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, and any otherall-in-one (AIO) data processing device. In some situations, devices 102may be located in geographically distributed or remote locations, suchas offices, homes, etc. Each device 102 may be operated by an individualend-consumer (e.g., lay person) or customer of a computer manufactureror software provider, for instance. In some cases, two or more of clientdevices 102A-N may be deployed within or managed by the sameorganization (e.g., a business).

Tools intended to facilitate service and/or support of client devices102 include service technicians 103, live support operators 104, and/orbackend service 105. Service technicians 103 include trained employeesor contractors that can travel to the site of device 102 or that canreceive the physical device 102 (e.g., at a retail store, by mail, etc.)or part(s) thereof in order to make repairs, for example. Live supportoperator(s) 104 may be available, for instance, when device 102 failsbut it is sufficiently operational that it can still connect the user tooperator(s) 104 via chat, email, text messages, Voice-Over-InternetProtocol (VoIP) call, etc. Additionally or alternatively, the user ofclient device 102 may place a conventional phone call to live supportoperator(s) 104 (e.g., using a 1-800 number or the like). In some cases,live support operator(s) 104 may interactively guide the user in aneffort to correct problems with client device 102 (e.g.,troubleshooting).

Backend service 105 may include one or more servers and/or IHSsconfigured to perform one or more automated operations with respect todevice 102. In various implementations, backend service 105 may beconfigured to communicate with a service OS prior to and/orindependently of IHS 102 being able to boot a main OS, and it may enableone or more support, diagnostics, or remediation operations to beperformed remotely including, but not limited to, telemetry, errorreporting, tracking, chat, etc.

Entities 102-105 may have access to network 101. In various embodiments,telecommunications network 101 may include one or more wirelessnetworks, circuit-switched networks, packet-switched networks, or anycombination thereof to enable communications between two or more ofIHSs. For example, network 101 may include a Public Switched TelephoneNetwork (PSTN), one or more cellular networks (e.g., third generation(3G), fourth generation (4G), or Long Term Evolution (LTE) wirelessnetworks), satellite networks, computer or data networks (e.g., wirelessnetworks, Wide Area Networks (WANs), metropolitan area networks (MANs),Local Area Networks (LANs), Virtual Private Networks (VPN), theInternet, etc.), or the like.

For purposes of this disclosure, an IHS may include any instrumentalityor aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, calculate,determine, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate,switch, store, display, communicate, manifest, detect, record,reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, ordata for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example,an IHS may be a personal computer (e.g., desktop or laptop), tabletcomputer, mobile device (e.g., Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) or smartphone), server (e.g., blade server or rack server), a network storagedevice, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape,performance, functionality, and price. An IHS may include Random AccessMemory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a CentralProcessing Unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, Read-OnlyMemory (ROM), and/or other types of NVMs.

Additional components of an IHS may include one or more disk drives, oneor more network ports for communicating with external devices as well asvarious I/O devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, touchscreen, and/or avideo display. An IHS may also include one or more buses operable totransmit communications between the various hardware components.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of an IHS. In some embodiments,IHS 200 may be used to implement any of computer systems or devices102A-N and/or 105. Moreover, IHS 200 may include a number of components,several of which may be physically disposed on a motherboard (not shown)or other printed circuit board (PCB). For example, in variousembodiments, IHS 200 may be a single-processor system including one CPU201, or a multi-processor system including two or more CPUs 201 (e.g.,two, four, eight, or any other suitable number). CPU(s) 201 may includeany processor capable of executing program instructions. For example, invarious embodiments, CPU(s) 201 may be general-purpose or embeddedprocessors implementing any of a variety of Instruction SetArchitectures (ISAs), such as the x86, POWERPC®, ARM®, SPARC®, or MIPS®ISAs, or any other suitable ISA. In multi-processor systems, each ofCPU(s) 201 may commonly, but not necessarily, implement the same ISA.

CPU(s) 201 are coupled to northbridge controller or chipset 201 viafront-side bus 203. Northbridge controller 202 may be configured tocoordinate I/O traffic between CPU(s) 201 and other components. Forexample, in this particular implementation, northbridge controller 202is coupled to graphics device(s) 204 (e.g., one or more video cards oradaptors) via graphics bus 205 (e.g., an Accelerated Graphics Port orAGP bus, a Peripheral Component Interconnect or PCI bus, or the like).Northbridge controller 202 is also coupled to system memory 206 viamemory bus 207, and to hard disk drive (HDD) 218. Memory 206 may beconfigured to store program instructions and/or data accessible byCPU(s) 201. In various embodiments, memory 206 may be implemented usingany suitable memory technology, such as static RAM (SRAM), synchronousdynamic RAM (SDRAM), nonvolatile/Flash-type memory, or any other type ofmemory. Conversely, HDD 218 may include any magnetic, solid-state (SSD),or hybrid data storage device capable of storing an OS and otherapplications.

Northbridge controller 202 is coupled to southbridge controller orchipset 208 via internal bus 209. Generally speaking, southbridgecontroller 208 may be configured to handle various of IHS 200's I/Ooperations, and it may provide interfaces such as, for instance,Universal Serial Bus (USB), audio, serial, parallel, Ethernet, or thelike via port(s), pin(s), and/or adapter(s) 216 over bus 217. Forexample, southbridge controller 208 may be configured to allow data tobe exchanged between IHS 200 and other devices, such as other IHSsattached to a network (e.g., network 101). In various embodiments,southbridge controller 208 may support communication via wired orwireless general data networks, such as any suitable type of Ethernetnetwork, for example; via telecommunications/telephony networks such asanalog voice networks or digital fiber communications networks; viastorage area networks such as Fiber Channel SANs; or via any othersuitable type of network and/or protocol.

Southbridge controller 208 may also enable connection to one or morekeyboards, keypads, touch screens, scanning devices, voice or opticalrecognition devices, or any other devices suitable for entering orretrieving data. Multiple I/O devices may be present in IHS 200. In someembodiments, I/O devices may be separate from IHS 200 and may interactwith IHS 200 through a wired or wireless connection. As shown,southbridge controller 208 is further coupled to one or more PCI devices210 (e.g., modems, network cards, sound cards, or video cards) and toone or more SCSI controllers 214 via parallel bus 211.

Southbridge controller 208 is also coupled to BIOS/UEFI 212 and to EC213 via Low Pin Count (LPC) bus 215. BIOS/UEFI 212 includes non-volatilememory having program instructions stored thereon. Those instructionsmay be usable by CPU(s) 201 to initialize and test other hardwarecomponents and/or to load an OS onto IHS 200.

EC 213 combines interfaces for a variety of lower bandwidth or low datarate devices that are typically coupled to IHS 200. Such devices mayinclude, for example, floppy disks, parallel ports, keyboard and mouse,temperature sensor and fan speed monitoring/control, among others. Invarious implementations, southbridge controller 208 may be configured toallow data to be exchanged between EC 213 (or BIOS/UEFI 212) and anotherIHS attached to network 101 (e.g., a remote server or other source oftechnical service) using wired or wireless capabilities of networkinterface adapter (NIC) 216.

In some cases, IHS 200 may be configured to provide access to differenttypes of computer-accessible media separate from memory 206. Generallyspeaking, a computer-accessible medium may include any tangible,non-transitory storage media or memory media such as electronic,magnetic, or optical media—e.g., magnetic disk, a hard drive, aCD/DVD-ROM, a Flash memory, etc. coupled to IHS 200 via northbridgecontroller 202 and/or southbridge controller 208.

The terms “tangible” and “non-transitory,” as used herein, are intendedto describe a computer-readable storage medium (or “memory”) excludingpropagating electromagnetic signals; but are not intended to otherwiselimit the type of physical computer-readable storage device that isencompassed by the phrase computer-readable medium or memory. Forinstance, the terms “non-transitory computer readable medium” or“tangible memory” are intended to encompass types of storage devicesthat do not necessarily store information permanently, including, forexample, RAM. Program instructions and data stored on a tangiblecomputer-accessible storage medium in non-transitory form may afterwardsbe transmitted by transmission media or signals such as electrical,electromagnetic, or digital signals, which may be conveyed via acommunication medium such as a network and/or a wireless link.

A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that IHS 200 ismerely illustrative and is not intended to limit the scope of thedisclosure described herein. In particular, any computer system and/ordevice may include any combination of hardware or software capable ofperforming certain operations described herein. In addition, theoperations performed by the illustrated components may, in someembodiments, be performed by fewer components or distributed acrossadditional components. Similarly, in other embodiments, the operationsof some of the illustrated components may not be performed and/or otheradditional operations may be available.

For example, in some implementations, northbridge controller 202 may becombined with southbridge controller 208, and/or be at least partiallyincorporated into CPU(s) 201. In other implementations, one or more ofthe devices or components shown in FIG. 2 may be absent, or one or moreother components may be added. Accordingly, systems and methodsdescribed herein may be implemented or executed with other IHSconfigurations.

In various embodiments, service and support capabilities may be built,at least in part, into a client device's EC 213 and/or BIOS/UEFI 212.

In that regard, FIG. 3 shows block diagram of an example of firmware 300configured to implement EC 213 and/or BIOS/UEFI 212. Particularly,firmware 300 may include one or more diagnostics routines, as well as anetwork stack. Firmware 300 also includes NVM mailbox 301 configured tostore program instructions that, upon execution, provide and/or receiveone or more service and support parameters or information 302 to or fromcontrol logic 303 of CPU(s) 201 or a remote device (e.g., backendservice 105) over network 101 in order to implement one or more serviceand support applications. In some cases NVM mailbox 301 may serve as a“mailbox” to track issues and other information persistently.

C. Service and Support Applications

In some embodiments, a variety of service and support applications maybe embedded, at least in part, within BIOS/UEFI 212 and/or EC 213.

i. Pre-Boot Support and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) Isolation

Currently, certain types of system failures can take a long time todiagnose. In those cases, conventional diagnostics processes can cause ahigh incident of “good” parts being inadvertently replaced, creatingmultiple service calls and FRU dispatches—an overall expensive andundesirable customer experience.

To address these, and other problems, systems and methods describedherein may enable remote diagnostics and access of an IHS withoutemploying any software agent installed (or operating) in the IHS. Invarious embodiments, these systems and methods may rely uponintelligence built into the IHS's Embedded Controller or “EC”—which isin contrast with existing remote support or access techniques that relyupon a functioning OS environment.

Accordingly, the systems and methods described herein may beparticularly relevant, for example, in situations an IHS suffers from acatastrophic failure (e.g., CPU failures, no video scenarios, etc.).Techniques are provided that enable control, diagnostic, and/orremediation of a “dead” IHS for maintenance and/or break/fix scenarios,regardless of the operational state of the IHS. For example, in somecases, these systems and methods may provide remote and agentless accessof dead/failed IHS attributes, remote and agentless setup andconfiguration control of an IHS, and an accessing device/entity (e.g., asmart mobile device) remotely running deterministic algorithm, as wellas coalescence of local and remote deterministic algorithms forcomprehensive coverage.

Moreover, the systems and methods described herein may provide isolationof an IHS' failure to an FRU, which promotes a more optimal serviceexperience. Techniques for identifying a FRU to exculpate, or replace,with a high degree of confidence regardless of the operational state ofan IHS are provided to increase accuracy and to reduce time toresolution, and also overall user/technician contact. These techniquesmay include local FRU isolation process(es) that are EC-based, andtherefore do not run on the IHS's main CPU. Even though such processesdo not rely on the CPU, they may include IHS-initiated remotecommunication of FRU isolation results, for example, to backend serviceor technician.

These, and other systems and methods, are explained in more detail in“Section E.”

ii. Pre-Boot Self-Healing and Adaptive Fault Isolation

Sometimes firmware, hardware, or configuration issues can lead “no boot”conditions. Historically, the BIOS was responsible to inform the user ofthe failure and to stop the boot process. The inventors hereof havedetermined, however, that in an IHS that includes resources such as aservice OS, an OS recovery environment, embedded diagnostics, and/or“call home” capabilities, the halting of the boot process by the BIOS isnot ideal.

To address these, and other problems, systems and methods may enablepre-boot self-healing in the BIOS. In various embodiments, these systemsand methods may enable the BIOS to, upon identifying a no boot scenario,take actions such as: bypassing failing devices, Option ROMs (OPROMs),rolling back user configuration, and/or booting to an interactiverecovery environment.

In various implementations, these systems and methods may employ astrike count for each module on the boot path (USB, PCIe, HDD, NIC,etc.), flag before and after device configuration steps to identifyhangs, and/or store in non-volatile memory devices that have caused ahang on previous boot and bypass in current boot. These systems andmethods may also save successful boot BIOS and device (HII)configurations to be restored incase of no boot, log all bypassed androlled back configuration for a recovery environment, and/or disable asneeded PCIe links, USB ports, external connections (e.g., docks,thunderbolt, type-C, etc.).

Moreover, systems and methods may also employ preservation of the faultenvironment, adaptive and deterministic analysis in a failed state,recognition of a fault, and/or real-time invocations of local or remotecommands in the failed state. In various implementations, techniques areprovided to coalesce adaptive and learning capabilities with failedenvironment preservation on an IHS outside of an OS. These techniquesmay employ OS-agnostic unattended fault learning capability in a failedsystem as well as OS-agnostic unattended sequential decision making in afailed system.

iii. Automated Fault Recovery

Existing IHS recovery techniques include OS recovery tools, virus scans,disk recovery, and other diagnostics. Currently, however, there is noautomated way for an IHS select and launch a given one of these recoverytools that is most suitable to address a particular failure. To date,recovery procedures still require a user to understand the failure andassociated fix tool.

To address these, and other problems, systems and methods may enableautomation of the tool selection and execution process, by the systemBIOS, based upon the particular type of failure encountered by the IHS.In various embodiments, the BIOS may be notified of each fix tool andthe types of failures each tool is intended to address.

Moreover, in some implementations, each recovery or diagnostic softwaretool may register its capabilities and associated OS faults or issues.The BIOS may be configured to detect boot up failures and/or delays inthe boot process, and to launch appropriate tools based upon theirregistration information. The BIOS may also include a state machine fortools to take control of the boot process.

iv. Proactive Fault Avoidance

Generally, it is only after an IHS fault has been detected that anyrecovery action is initiated. By the time an IHS suffers a failure,however, its operational capability may already be severely degraded,impacting the IHS's ability to be diagnosed and negatively affecting theuser's experience. Accordingly, the inventors hereof have determinedthat recognizing and interpreting indications leading to a failure canenable in proactive action which in turn can prevent or lessen theimpact of system failure.

To address these, and other problems, systems and methods may enableproactive fault avoidance. In various embodiments, system telemetry maybe resolved against normal operational boundaries using self-containedOS agnostic trending algorithms to predict system failures forproactively avoiding those failures. Examples of system telemetry datainclude, but are not limited to, voltage tree spanning, temperature,shock count, shock magnitude, humidity, pressure, charge cycles,discharge profile, etc. These techniques may be combined with userbehavioral heuristics. Also, a maintenance mode may be scheduled duringan IHS's down time (e.g., turned off or sleeping), thus creating a lowimpact system maintenance schedule.

In some implementations, proactive fault avoidance techniques mayinclude a self-contained intelligent maintenance mode scheduling,persistent tracking of telemetry across several or all states of an IHS(including low power states), self-contained OS agnostic sensoramalgamation, and self-contained OS agnostic trending algorithms.

E. Pre-Boot Support and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) Isolation

When an IHS is turned on (e.g., when the user presses the power or resetbutton), the motherboard to which all components are connected ispowered up, initializes its own firmware, and attempts to run a CPU. Atthis point in the boot process, if anything fails (e.g., the CPU ismissing), it will likely make the IHS “dead.” These types ofcatastrophic failures provide no user interface, therefore the typicaluser has little recourse other than calling the manufacturer ortechnical support service. And still, these calls can be unproductiveinsofar as a conventional IHS would not provide useful information tothe user, and would not be accessible for remote debugging. As a result,the entire IHS must be shipped for service, or two or more differentreplacement parts (e.g., power supply, etc.) end up being sent to theclient, often unnecessarily, in hopes that one of them will solve theotherwise undiagnosed issue.

To address these problems, in various embodiments, EC 213 may includeprogram instructions that enable EC 213 to perform one or morediagnostic operations and to implement a network protocol stackindependently of an operational status of the processor and the BIOS.Even in a catastrophic situation, where the IHS is unresponsive andcannot provide a user interface, the systems and methods describedherein provide some level of diagnostics via an embedded controller thatis capable of identifying one or more failures, identifying a FieldReplaceable Unit (FRU) that is a better candidate for replacement,and/or communicate the diagnostics information to a backend or supportservice without user intervention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of method 400 for providing agentless and/orpre-boot technical support, and Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) isolation.In some embodiments, at least blocks 402-405 of method 400 are performedin the absence of any Operating System (OS) environment, user interface,or user instruction. At block 401, IHS 200 is tuned on. Then, at block402, EC 213 is initialized.

At block 403, EC 213 implements a network stack. For example, EC 213 mayload or bind a layered set of network protocols. In some cases, anapplication layer, a transport layer, an internet layer, a data linklayer, and a physical layer may be invoked. In other cases, fewer layersmay be used sufficient to enable EC 213 to assemble and transmit atleast a single message (e.g., an IP packet) to a predetermined IPaddress, such as the address of a backend server or the like).

In some cases, EC 213 may use the network stack to communicate via anetwork interface card provided elsewhere on the motherboard (e.g.,network adapter in block 216). Additionally or alternatively, EC 213 mayhave built-in radio capabilities that enable it to send a short rangesignal (e.g., Bluetooth) to a nearby device, such as another IHS or adevice operated by a technician on site.

At block 404, EC 213 performs one or more diagnostic operations upon theIHS. For example, EC 213 may monitor a voltage tree of nodes orcomponent on the IHS's motherboard, and may compare present readingswith previous readings stored in an NVM (e.g., NVM mailbox 301).Additionally or alternatively, EC 213 may compare actual voltagereadings with expected values for each node stored in the NVM. Each IHSplatform may have its own voltage tree characteristics; therefore insome cases EC 213 may include a suitable learning algorithm to help itevaluate whether a voltage value is outside a range of acceptable valuesfor a given IHS component or node.

At block 405, the diagnostic operations, upon execution, may identify aprocessor failure or a BIOS failure. Additionally or alternatively,diagnostic operations may be configured to identify a power failure, aclock failure, or a code fetching failure. Moreover, by inspecting theIHS's voltage tree, these operations may be configured to identify adefective FRU when the FRU's voltage nodes are outside of an acceptablerange, and/or to exculpate a good or functioning FRU when its voltagenodes are within an acceptable range.

At block 406, EC 213 may be configured to communicate the results ofblocks 404-405 to a remote service or technical support personnel (e.g.,backend service 105). For example, the IHS may host a web service usingthe network stack, and the web service may be configured to provide theresult of the one or more diagnostic operations in response to a request(e.g., an HTTP GET command). Additionally or alternatively, the IHS maysend an alert to a pre-registered IP address that includes an indicationof the result of the one or more diagnostic operations. In some cases, alist of FRUs that have passed the voltage tree test and/or a list ofFRUs that have failed the voltage tree test may be provided.

It should be understood that various operations described herein may beimplemented in software executed by logic or processing circuitry,hardware, or a combination thereof. The order in which each operation ofa given method is performed may be changed, and various operations maybe added, reordered, combined, omitted, modified, etc. It is intendedthat the invention(s) described herein embrace all such modificationsand changes and, accordingly, the above description should be regardedin an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Although the invention(s) is/are described herein with reference tospecific embodiments, various modifications and changes can be madewithout departing from the scope of the present invention(s), as setforth in the claims below. Accordingly, the specification and figuresare to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense,and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scopeof the present invention(s). Any benefits, advantages, or solutions toproblems that are described herein with regard to specific embodimentsare not intended to be construed as a critical, required, or essentialfeature or element of any or all the claims.

Unless stated otherwise, terms such as “first” and “second” are used toarbitrarily distinguish between the elements such terms describe. Thus,these terms are not necessarily intended to indicate temporal or otherprioritization of such elements. The terms “coupled” or “operablycoupled” are defined as connected, although not necessarily directly,and not necessarily mechanically. The terms “a” and “an” are defined asone or more unless stated otherwise. The terms “comprise” (and any formof comprise, such as “comprises” and “comprising”), “have” (and any formof have, such as “has” and “having”), “include” (and any form ofinclude, such as “includes” and “including”) and “contain” (and any formof contain, such as “contains” and “containing”) are open-ended linkingverbs. As a result, a system, device, or apparatus that “comprises,”“has,” “includes” or “contains” one or more elements possesses those oneor more elements but is not limited to possessing only those one or moreelements. Similarly, a method or process that “comprises,” “has,”“includes” or “contains” one or more operations possesses those one ormore operations but is not limited to possessing only those one or moreoperations.

1. An Information Handling System (IHS), comprising: an embeddedcontroller (EC) distinct from any processor or Basic I/O System (BIOS),the EC having program instructions stored thereon that, upon execution,cause the IHS to: implement a network stack independently of anoperational status of the processor or BIOS; perform one or morediagnostic operations upon the IHS; and communicate a result of the oneor more diagnostic operations to a remote server using the networkstack.
 2. The IHS of claim 1, wherein program instructions areconfigured to be executed in the absence of any Operating System (OS)environment.
 3. The IHS of claim 1, wherein program instructions areconfigured to be executed in the absence of any graphical interface. 4.The IHS of claim 1, wherein program instructions are configured to beexecuted in the absence of any user instruction.
 5. The IHS of claim 1,wherein the program instructions, upon execution, further cause the IHSto host a web service via the EC using the network stack, and whereinthe web service is configured to provide the result of the one or morediagnostic operations in response to a request.
 6. The IHS of claim 1,wherein the program instructions, upon execution, further cause the IHSto send an alert to a pre-registered Internet Protocol (IP) address viathe EC using the network stack, and wherein the alert includes anindication of the result of the one or more diagnostic operations. 7.The IHS of claim 1, wherein the one or more diagnostic operations areconfigured to identify a processor failure or a BIOS failure.
 8. The IHSof claim 1, wherein the one or more diagnostic operations are configuredto identify a power failure, a clock failure, or a code fetchingfailure.
 9. The IHS of claim 1, wherein the one or more diagnosticoperations are configured to identify a defective Field Replaceable Unit(FRU) in a pre-boot environment.
 10. The IHS of claim 9, wherein the oneor more diagnostic operations are configured perform the identificationof the FRU, at least in part, by inspecting a voltage value for each ofa plurality of platform-specific nodes, and comparing a current voltagevalue with a previous value for each node.
 11. A computer-implementedmethod, comprising: implementing a network stack by an embeddedcontroller (EC) independently of an operational status of a processor orBasic I/O System (BIOS); performing, by the EC, one or more diagnosticoperations upon the IHS; and communicating a result of the one or morediagnostic operations, by the EC, to a remote server using the networkstack, wherein the one or more diagnostic operations are configured toidentify a defective Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) in a pre-bootenvironment.
 12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, whereinthe method is executed in the absence of any user interface.
 13. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprisingautomatically sending an alert to a pre-registered Internet Protocol(IP) address by the EC using the network stack.
 14. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the one or morediagnostic operations are configured to identify a power failure, aclock failure, or a code fetching failure.
 15. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 11, wherein the one or more diagnostic operations areconfigured perform the identification of the FRU, at least in part, byinspecting a voltage value for each of a plurality of platform-specificnodes, and comparing a current voltage value with a previous value foreach node.
 16. A storage device having program instructions storedthereon that, upon execution by an Information Handling System (IHS),cause the IHS to: implement a network stack by an embedded controller(EC) independently of an operational status of a processor or Basic I/OSystem (BIOS); perform, by the EC, one or more diagnostic operationsupon the IHS; and communicate a result of the one or more diagnosticoperations, by the EC, to a remote server using the network stack,wherein the one or more diagnostic operations are configured to identifya defective Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) in a pre-boot environment. 17.The storage device of claim 16, wherein program instructions areconfigured to be executed in the absence of any user interface.
 18. Thestorage device of claim 16, wherein program instructions are configuredto cause the IHS to automatically send an alert to a pre-registeredInternet Protocol (IP) address by the EC using the network stack. 19.The storage device of claim 16, wherein the one or more diagnosticoperations are configured to identify a power failure, a clock failure,or a code fetching failure.
 20. The storage device of claim 16, whereinthe one or more diagnostic operations are configured perform theidentification of the FRU, at least in part, by inspecting a voltagevalue for each of a plurality of platform-specific nodes, and comparinga current voltage value with a previous value for each node.